Templates

What Are Templates?

Templates define what products go into a release or shipment. They're the bridge between your inventory and your members' orders — they tell WineView exactly what to include when it's time to fulfill.

Without a template, WineView doesn't know what to put in the box. Templates must be set up before fulfillment can begin.

Templates are only relevant for Subscription and Release clubs. Membership-Only clubs do not have fulfillment and therefore do not use templates.

Where to Find Templates

Templates are created and managed at the location level. To access them:

Open the Dashboard
Click Templates in the sidebar menu (under the Location section)

This shows all templates for your current location. Since each template is tied to a specific location, you'll see only the templates relevant to the location you're currently managing. Switch locations from the UserMenu to see templates for a different location.

Template Types

There are two template types:

Fulfillment

Used for ongoing cycle or release shipments. This is the template that determines what wines members receive (or choose from) during each fulfillment cycle or release.

For Subscription listings, the active fulfillment template determines what goes out each billing cycle.
For Release listings, you select which template to use each time you create a new release.

Enrollment

Used for the initial purchase when a new member joins the club. Enrollment templates define what wines are available in the welcome package, separate from ongoing fulfillment.

How enrollment templates work:

The enrollment template is used only for the initial signup purchase, not for ongoing shipments
It can offer a different set of wines than the regular fulfillment template
New members go through a selection flow when signing up, choosing from the enrollment template's available products
If no enrollment template exists, new members wait for the next regular fulfillment cycle to receive wine

When to use enrollment templates:

When you want new members to receive wine right away rather than waiting for the next scheduled shipment
When your welcome package differs from your regular shipments
When you want to make a strong first impression with a curated or customizable welcome selection

Inventory Control Modes

Each tier has an inventory control mode that determines how wines are selected. This mode applies to all templates created for that tier:

Exact Set

With an Exact Set template, you pre-select the exact wines that go into every shipment. All members who receive this template get the same wines in the same quantities.

How it works:

You choose specific products from your inventory and set the quantity for each
Every member in the associated tier receives the identical selection
Members have no say in what they receive — you curate the entire shipment

When to use it:

Traditional wine clubs where the winemaker or staff curates each shipment
When you want consistency — every member gets the same experience
When you have specific wines you want to showcase or move through inventory

Example: For a 6-bottle tier, you might set up an Exact Set template with 2 bottles of your 2023 Pinot Noir, 2 bottles of your 2022 Chardonnay, and 2 bottles of your 2024 Rosé. Every member in that tier receives exactly those six bottles.

Customer Choice

With a Customer Choice template, members choose their own wines from a selection you make available. You control which products are offered, and members pick the ones they want within their bottle count.

How it works:

You select which products from your inventory are available for members to choose from
Members browse the available options and select the wines they want
Members choose up to their tier's bottle count from the available products
You set a choice cutoff deadline — a date after which members can no longer make or change their selections

The choice cutoff deadline: Every Customer Choice template has a cutoff deadline. This is the date by which members must finalize their wine selections. After the cutoff:

Members can no longer make changes to their selections
The system automatically assigns selections for any members who haven't chosen by the deadline
This ensures every member has a complete selection before fulfillment begins, even if they didn't actively pick their wines

When to use it:

Clubs that want to give members control over their shipments
When you carry a variety of wines and want members to explore
When member satisfaction depends on personal taste preferences

Example: For a 6-bottle tier, you might make 15 different wines available. Members browse the list and pick any 6 they want. If a member doesn't choose by the cutoff deadline, the system assigns 6 wines automatically.

Item Slots

Templates contain item slots that map to products in your inventory. Each item slot represents one product (a specific wine) and includes details like:

Which inventory product it maps to
The quantity of that product in the template
Pre-selected quantity (for Customer Choice — how many are pre-filled for the member by default)
Any constraints on selection (for Customer Choice templates)

Item slots are how the template connects to your real inventory. When fulfillment runs, WineView looks at the template's item slots to determine which products to pull from stock.

Connecting Templates to Releases

Templates connect to releases — when you create a release, you select which template to use. This tells WineView what wines to include in that release's shipments.

For Subscription listings, the active template determines what goes out each cycle. For Release listings, you choose the template each time you create a new release, giving you flexibility to change the selection with every release without modifying the tier itself.

Different releases can use different templates for the same tier, so you can vary the wines offered over time. Templates are reusable — the same template can be used across multiple releases or cycles.

Inventory Availability

Templates respect inventory availability. When setting up a template:

You can only add products that exist in your location's inventory
If a product is out of stock, it cannot be assigned to a template
For Customer Choice templates, members can only select products that are currently in stock

This prevents overselling and ensures that every wine in a template can actually be fulfilled.

Template Statuses

Each template has an active/inactive status:

Status	What It Means
No badge	The template is ready — fully configured and active
Needs Setup (warning badge)	The template exists but one or more locations haven't been configured yet
Inactive	The template is not currently active — it won't be used for new orders

Only one template can be active per tier per type (Fulfillment or Enrollment) at a time. When you activate a new template, the previously active one is automatically deactivated.

Best Practices

Create templates early. Don't wait until the last minute. Set up and activate your template well before the fulfillment cycle or release begins so everything is ready.
Set a reasonable choice cutoff deadline for Customer Choice templates. Give members enough time to browse and choose (at least a week is recommended), but leave yourself enough time after the cutoff to prepare shipments.
Check inventory before finalizing. Make sure the products in your template are in stock and in sufficient quantity to cover all members in the tier.
Use Enrollment templates for a great first impression. The welcome shipment is a member's first experience with your club. Make the options appealing and the selection process smooth.
Review templates before each release. For Release clubs, make sure the template you're connecting to the release has the right products and quantities before you launch.
Don't delete old templates — deactivated templates serve as a record of what was offered in previous cycles, which is helpful for reference.